Darwin Radio Diary No.5: Christmas at Bagot Community

Over this year we've been talking to a range of Aboriginal people living in and around Darwin, and collecting their stories as a set of radio diaries. Here is our fifth diary, from Mary, telling us about Christmas Day in Bagot Community.

Every show has a Christmas special and the Darwin Radio Diaries is no exception. And like every Christmas special, this one will leave you feeling good. For me, when we recorded it, it also left me feeling a bit like "Wow, really?! I didn't know that!"

Today Mary tells us today about the bitter-sweetness of the Christmas period for Aboriginal families and a unique Christmas tradition that I didn't know about even after living up here for six years!

Mary is a grandmother from Bagot Community. She raised 9 children and has 4 grandchildren. She has lived in Bagot nearly all of her life.

You might remember her previous diary about catching the bus after The Intervention was announced. If you missed it, you can play it again here.

The Darwin Radio Diaries are played every afternoon on ABC Drive with Vicki Kerrigan. We post them here after they're played for you to listen to again, catch any you missed and to share with your friends.

If you aren't familiar with The Radio Diaries, you can find out what it's all about in our first post here.

And catch up on our previous diaries:

Diary One: Mary's Bus Ride - About catching the bus after The Intervention was announced

Diary Two: Jason Walks in Both Worlds - About the challenges of walking in both whiteman's and Aboriginal worlds.

The aim of the project is to give the broader community a glimpse of day to day life for different Aboriginal people living in and around Darwin. A chance to walk in their shoes for a while and see things from a different perspective.

Have a listen to Mary's diary and post your comments here. What's different and what's the same as your Christmas experience? Did this diary surprise you at all? Did it show you a side of Bagot you did not know about? Is there anything else you would like to know about life in Bagot Community? Then ask Mary here!

The Radio Diaries project is an initiative of the Larrakia Nation Aboriginal Corporation, a not-for-profit organisation representing the descendants of the Larrakia people, the original owners of the land on which Darwin is built.